One of the best things that could have happened to NBC's new cop series, "Southland," is premiering a day after ABC's dreadful "The Unusuals," which tries to mix comedy and drama and cops and ends up with a deadly explosion of bad television.

"Southland" also has pretty good timing in regard to the absence of television's finest cop series - "The Wire" and "The Shield" - which set the bar so impossibly high that it's a wonder any sane writer ever tries to apply himself to the genre.

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But Ann Biderman, who won an Emmy writing for "NYPD Blue" (which, along with "Homicide: Life on the Streets," was the last great broadcast network series about cops), wasn't frightened away.

With any luck - and any series that appears on NBC needs lots of luck - Biderman may have breathed some life into one of television's staples. That's another reason to root for "Southland": Broadcast television deserves a good prime-time series about the uniforms and suits who wear a badge. Especially a series that isn't a spin-off of "Law & Order."

Biderman and fellow executive producer John Wells have looked to Los Angeles and its sprawling metropolis for the fertile ground of portraying a police force at odds with the vastness and lawlessness of urban (and suburban) America. If the pilot, which was all NBC sent, is any indication of the direction of the series, it's off to a fine start.

Into the darkness

"Southland" kicks off with enough indications of evil - gang warfare, drug life, sexual predators, etc. - to imply where the series might go. In this case, it's toward the darkness (not a lot of happy endings in the pilot) and the kind of roughness of language and visual content not seen since, well, "NYPD Blue."

The characters use swear words that are then bleeped out. That's about the best possible way to attain the realism granted to superior cable shows. If some of the other unedited words get in, it would be a surprise.

The casting on "Southland" is a plus and so is Biderman's intent not to make it easy for viewers to succumb to "pilotitis." She introduces the large ensemble without pausing for reminders. Even that little refusal to pander is encouraging. Michael Cudlitz is at the center of this series as John Cooper, a veteran L.A. cop assigned rookie Ben Sherman (Ben McKenzie) straight out of the academy and, as Cooper finds out, the son of wealthy and possibly famous parents.

Regina King is Detective Lydia Adams, an astute observer of human behavior who, when her shift is over (and it never seems to be over) takes care of her elderly mother. Detective Russell Clarke (Tom Everett Scott) is her partner, a sensitive soul described as "an unhappily married father of three." The series also covers a gang task force, various street cops and the requisite bosses, with glimpses of home lives thrown in for emotional effect.

Refreshing potential

The staggering number of formulaic cop series that have been on network television over the years doesn't lend much hope that any new one will offer something fresh, or even intelligent. But "Southland" appears to have enormous potential, given the restraints of broadcast standards (not to mention the demands of network brass to deliver something familiar and palatable for the masses).

Biderman (who also wrote the screenplay for "Smilla's Sense of Snow") doesn't take any shortcuts in the pilot. There's no rush to simplify characters, to create heroes or to delineate good guys from bad guys. There's plenty of cop banter and bravado, but no pat humor. They come out stark and, refreshingly, don't often get a reaction. It's clear Biderman knows something about human behavior and what cops do to cope with their work.

The most worrying aspect of "Southland" is that, as unexpectedly good as it is, the series has only seven episodes to prove itself. And given the content, "Southland" is very much a 10 p.m. series - and you may have heard that NBC has no real estate at 10 p.m. next fall thanks to Jay Leno and his talk show.

That means "Southland" will be fighting for a slot on a network that really needs a hefty new ensemble drama. It's telling that "Southland" got the post-"ER" slot on Thursdays. What's less obvious is whether it can make the kind of impact that even NBC executives can view as a win.

CBS has no such worries next year about what to do with its shows and wouldn't anyway with the Thursday premiere of "Harper's Island," a 13-episode series scripted in a way that, when it's over, the show itself is killed off.

Well, not literally. But taking a page from slasher movies and murder mysteries, "Harper's Island" is a series about a wedding that takes place on a fictional island near Seattle where one cast member will be killed every episode, finally revealing the murderer in the last episode from a pool of 25 suspects.

It's not a wedding party you'd want to attend, but it might be one you'd want to watch. "Harper's Island" is ghoulish and scary fun (and you'll know for certain that it will end before it gets pulled off the air). In this current television environment, there's something about a finite ending that's appealing - and 13 weeks isn't too much of a commitment, especially if you have a DVR.

"Harper's Island" might end up being a guilty pleasure. It's got blood and sex and intrigue galore, and there are enough red herrings and frightening gotchas to spill the popcorn two or three times an hour.

The writing is just clever enough to probably make the killing-a-week conceit work. And if you're into watching a phalanx of almost-recognizable actors you've seen in work you can almost remember, this is the series for you. Beyond that, it's just plain fun.

"Harper's Island" doesn't aspire to be great art, but its entertainment value runs deep. And who knows, if it becomes a hit, maybe CBS will fashion another limited-run murder mystery. There are plenty of worse ideas - and it beats another reality show.